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The attention-catching contender on the longlist for the £10,000 Guardian First Book award is Luther Blissett, the wry pseudonym adopted by four Italians who, since publishing Q in 1999, have declared that Blissett — the imaginary author, not the former England and Milan striker whose name they borrowed — has committed “ritual suicide” (so how could he win?). In with much stronger chances of collecting the cash and kudos, however, are Monica Ali and D B C Pierre, both also Booker-longlisted. And, as only one woman — 2000’s shoo-in Zadie Smith — has won the prize in its present form, Ali must be favourite to get the nod from a paper ultra-conscious of the desirability of gender balance.

Among the drollest of the confessions collected in Fourth Estate’s forthcoming Mortification: Writers’ Stories of Their Public Shame is André Brink’s account of making small-talk with his publisher at a launch party. Noticing a badly-dressed figure